


Moonlit Nights

by Soggychan



Category: Love Live! School Idol Festival (Video Game), Love Live! School Idol Project, Love Live! Sunshine!!
Genre: A little bit of a dark theme kinda, Dia is really gay but never noticed, F/F, Riko deserves happiness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:01:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,946
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23568013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Soggychan/pseuds/Soggychan
Summary: Dia has been extra stressed because of the amount of work that's been piling up lately, forcing her to stay late at school. One of these evenings, she hears a beautiful melody from the music room and follows it only to find an even more beautiful girl creating it. Will Dia find out why she feels so drawn to this girl she's only just met?
Relationships: Kurosawa Dia/Sakurauchi Riko
Comments: 5
Kudos: 41





	Moonlit Nights

Dia let out a languid sigh, letting her head rest for just a second as she tossed her pen to the side, unconcerned with where it landed. Working late into the evening to finish her student council work was a chore, but with Mari constantly having her run around during the day, it was impossible to finish it any other time. With an exaggerated stretch, she finally organized the papers and filed them away to be given to Mari tomorrow.

She glanced at the clock to show her it was already 7:00pm. How long had she been working? She had told Ruby to go on ahead, but her sister must be worrying about her by that point. Well, she would head home soon enough. The option of calling a driver was there, but she wanted to relax, so she figured she would just take one of the last buses. It could drop her off pretty close to her home and she could relax with the view on the way.

With that decided, she grabbed her bag and exited the student council president’s office, locking it behind her. The sun was in its mid stages of setting, dying the sky in rays of orange. Even inside, Dia felt chilly and she cringed thinking she would have to walk through that weather. But maybe the cold weather would serve as an ample distraction, one that she greatly needed. Student council work was burning her out lately, but it wasn’t like she could just quit. Kurosawa Dia wasn’t that kind of person. Once she decided on doing something, especially something that other people relied on her for, she would see it through until the end.

As she reached the stairs leading the to the first floor, something caught her ear. In the otherwise silent building, the flow of music, notes played on a piano that bounced off walls, filled her ears. Dia couldn’t help but be curious. Who else would be here there so late? And playing the piano? She turned away from the stairs and tried her best to quietly walk down the hall, not wanting to interrupt whoever was there. As she neared, the piece reached its crescendo, rising in both volume and intensity. Every stroke of the key sent a spark of electricity down Dia’s back and she moved quicker. She needed to see, needed to know what was happening.

Dia put her back to the wall outside the music room. The door was slightly ajar, just enough for her to peek in, affording her a view of the piano… and the beautiful girl playing it. Red hair swayed with every movement, amber eyes practically glowed in the dimly lit room, fading sunlight providing the only light for her to observe the girl. It was impossible to see her hands from Dia’s position, but she could imagine slender hands dancing across the keys, a miracle of sound. She wasn’t sure how long she watched for, but she felt herself finally let out a breath once those hands danced out the last of their waltz and came to rest in the girl’s lap.

The melody still rang clearly in Dia’s ears as if the girl had never stopped playing. It felt like she like all the stress of the day and any days that have passed had been wiped away, blasted into oblivion with just a piano. Dia was no musician, but even she could tell the skill with which the redhead played. There was no way she would feel like that if this wasn’t a prodigy of some kind.

What finally broke Dia out of her trance were amber eyes meeting hers, the redhead’s face suddenly flushing in embarrassment from being caught. Dia panicked for a second but she didn’t know why. She was the student council president, surely she could use that as an excuse, right? She cleared her throat and slid the door open the rest of the way, trying to calm her heart that was slamming against her chest.

“Ah, um… Sorry. I did not mean to eavesdrop.” Dia felt oddly nervous about confronting the girl. Maybe the music was still affecting her, or maybe it was those piercing amber eyes that, even in the relative darkness, glowed, beautiful and transient, staring right into… She shook her head. Now wasn’t the time to get lost in the eyes of a stranger.

The girl squeaked in surprise and shook her head quickly. She looked up with a small smile and nodded as if to say it was okay.

“Ah.” That was all she could think to say, and she internally slapped herself for it. She had to say something after listening in without permission, right? After some debate, she ended up just blurting out her thoughts on the piece. “Your playing is very beautiful.” Her cheeks heated up and she wanted to leave right then and there. Why was she making such a fool of herself? There was no reason to feel so nervous. This girl was just like any other student, any other student that was so beautiful it could stun even Dia into silence, but she promised to not let herself say that part out loud.

The redhead looked more flustered by her praise than she felt giving it so that was something at least. She moved to get up from the piano but tripped over her own foot and hit a few discordant notes as she tried to straighten herself, her face redder than her hair by that point.

“S-Sorry to interrupt you.” Dia turned toward the door and took one step out. “I’ll be going now.” Before she could even move one foot, she felt a tug on her sleeve and turned to see the redhead looking up at her, her eyes darting around briefly before that same shy small smile graced her lips once again, making Dia’s heart leap in her chest. Why was she feeling like that just because the girl smiled? Get a grip, Dia. “Y-Yes, um…”

The redhead perked up a bit and she fished around in one of her pockets without letting go of Dia’s sleeve until she got a wallet out and presented it to the older girl. Dia was confused at first but then she noticed, she was presenting her student ID. ‘ **Sakurauchi Riko** ,’ it read.

“Ah, Sakurauchi-san then.” Riko nodded, her smile growing larger before pocketing her wallet and returning to that shy smile. “I’m Kurosawa Dia, the student council president.” Riko gave another nod as if to say she already knew and then gave her senior’s sleeve a tug and Dia accepted, letting the redhead lead her to the piano bench. Riko plopped down and patted the spot next to her. The bench was just big enough for two people but Dia still hesitated.

Riko frowned and fumbled around in her pockets before producing a small notepad and pencil. She quickly scribbled something on it before presenting it to Dia. ‘ **Do you want to listen for a bit?** ’ Dia lowered the notepad to see Riko patting the seat next to her once again. It definitely rose the question of why the girl wasn’t speaking but Dia also figured that wasn’t any of her business. Why should she dig into the personal life of this girl she had only just met?

Dia resigned and took her place next to the girl, Riko nodding happily. Dia immediately noticed that there was no sheet music for the girl to read from. Had she played that beautiful music from memory? That only reaffirmed her piano prodigy thought from earlier. She watched closely as Riko took a deep breath and placed her fingers on the keys once again.

From the first note, Dia felt wrapped in the music once again, unaware of her surroundings. Just as she had imagined, those fingers effortlessly danced across the keys, playing out a melody that both soothed her heart and made it beat uncontrollably. Riko was very animated when playing, swaying around with her eyes closed, shoulder occasionally bumping Dia’s, but Dia certainly didn’t mind. In fact, she barely even noticed, her eyes were locked on the girl playing. Suddenly the empty room felt so full, full of energy, life, happiness, so many emotions, so many… things. Dia felt overwhelmed by the pure passion pouring from the girl as she played out her heart on that piano.

She wasn’t sure how long the girl played, but by the time she was done, the sun had fully set, leaving them in pure darkness. But Dia felt comfortable still and when Riko finally stopped and opened her eyes, turning to assess how Dia had taken her playing, the senior sucked in her breath. Once again, she was faced with amber eyes that absorbed her, glowing in that darkness, lightning up the room all on their own. Her heart begged for release as it slammed into her ribcage, Dia not sure how exactly to answer those eyes so full of expectation. But she had to say something. She audibly swallowed before opening her mouth.

“That… was amazing.” There wasn’t much else to say, that was how she really felt. There were no other words to describe the scene she had just witnessed. Luckily, it appeared as though Riko wasn’t expecting anything more and a wide smile spread on her face and she nodded, playing a small quick five second tune of what Dia could only assume to be joy.

Then Riko looked around the room suddenly and snatched up her notepad again, scribbling words out and presenting them to the girl. It was kind of hard to see considering the only light was the sparse moonlight from the windows but with some squinting Dia could make out the words. ‘ **I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to keep you so long.** ’ Riko looked genuinely worried as if Dia was going to get angry at her or something. In reality, it was quite the opposite. For the first time in a while, she felt completely at ease, happy even.

Dia quickly shook her head. “I very much enjoyed listening to you play, Sakurauchi-san.” She was about to continue but Riko quickly scribbled something onto her notepad and held it up. ‘ **Riko.** ’ Dia tilted her head in confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

Riko giggled and scribbled on the notepad once again. ‘ **I would like it if you would call me Riko.** ’ Her face flushed and she quickly amended the note with some more writing at the bottom, written such that Dia had to tilt her head even more to read it. ‘ **If you don’t mind.** ’

Despite the embarrassing prospect of referring to one of her juniors by first name, Dia felt a smile sneaking its way onto her lips and she nodded. “Riko…san then.” Riko looked a little upset about the honorific but she didn’t ‘say’ anymore, she just nodded. Dia cleared her throat, trying not to think about how cute Riko was when she was pouting. “Well then, I believe it’s time for me to get going. I don’t want to make my sister wait long. You should get going too, Riko-san. The buses don’t run too late here.” The redhead nodded her agreement and grabbed her bag before joining Dia who had walked to the door. They exited together and silently walked down the hill their school was perched upon.

Dia fished around in her head for a topic. It wasn’t that the silence was particularly uncomfortable, but it still felt like she should speak to the girl while she could. “So, Riko-san.” The redhead looked her way and had her notepad prepared. Dia silently giggled at that and continued. “Why do you enjoy playing the piano? If you don’t mind my asking.”

As if she didn’t even need to think about it, Riko started scribbling. She paused at some point to think but continued quickly before presenting the notepad. Dia felt like she was already getting used to the girl’s unusual behavior and gave her a kind smile before accepting the notepad. ‘ **I think it’s easy to communicate my feelings through the piano. I hope that you were able to hear my feelings as well tonight.** ’

Dia felt her face flushing for she could only assume was the one hundredth time that night and looked away as she presented the notepad back to the girl. Surely, she was misunderstanding that, right? There was no way that was some kind of indirect confession, right? Dia had never been confessed to before, probably because she liked to seem like the strict president at school, so everybody was way too afraid to even talk to her most of the time, much less confess to her. But that perfectly rational line of thought didn’t slow her racing heart and she found it hard to look at the girl now.

“I-I see. I suppose that’s true. I-I certainly did feel your passion.” She nodded. That’s what Riko must have meant, her feelings of love for the piano. Of course. They had just met, it would be strange if she were to confess to her already. Already? Dia internally slapped herself again. Was she hoping for something like that in the future? They had just met!

Riko silently giggled and scribbled a quick, ‘ **I’m glad!** ’ before holding the notepad up for her senpai to see.

As Dia stepped next to the bus stop, she noticed the lack of the redhead next to her and turned to see the girl staring up at the sky, at the moon specifically. “Riko-san?” Riko jumped and looked over to her. She shook her head before running over, producing her notepad to scribble on.

‘ **I think I’ll walk home after all.** ’

“Eh? Walk home? It’s not that I don’t believe Uchiura is safe, but a girl walking home at night by herself is…”

‘ **Does the moonlight not make you want to take a walk?** ’ Riko flashed a grin before scribbling more. ‘ **I can hear the melody of the moon. I think I would like to write a piece about it next.** ’

“I see… so you want to get some inspiration by walking home under the moon?” Riko nodded. “I suppose that’s alright then. But do be careful, please.” Another nod. Just then the bus rounded a corner, pulling slowly towards them.

‘ **Then, have a good night, Kurosawa-senpai.** ’

“And you as well, Riko-san.”

With that, Dia could only watch as Riko marched off into the darkness, fading from view slowly, the exact opposite of the explosive introduction she had in Dia’s life. She slowly turned toward the bus as it pulled up and got on board, a slight regret lingering in her that she didn’t at least offer to walk the girl home.

-

-

Dia let out a sigh of relief as she packed the last of the paperwork for the day away. The sun was well into the horizon by the time she finished but strangely enough she didn’t mind. After all, the past three days she had spent just like the first day she met Riko. She would finish her paperwork, go to the music room, listen to a piece or two played by the redhead who seemed more than happy to have her there, and then walk to the bus stop with her. Riko had rode the bus with her two of the three past days but had walked home in the dark by herself one of those times. Dia hadn’t built up the courage to ask to walk her there so she had just ridden the bus once again.

She made her way to the music room with a smile on her face, the melody of the piano reaching her ears before she even made it to the door. But the song… the smile faded from her face as she peeked inside. The usually vibrant tunes played by her were nowhere to be found, nor was the animated redhead. Riko sat almost perfectly still aside from her hands and the tune played out sad notes, feelings of a grief that Dia didn’t even know filling her heart. Since when was she this moved by music?

The light glinting off a single tear falling down the redhead’s cheek snapped Dia out of her trance and she quickly opened the door, ignoring the jump from the surprised girl and made her way over to her. Riko stared at her for a few second before blinking and then her eyes widened. She quickly raised her arm to wipe the tear away and any lingering tears that hadn’t fallen.

Dia had rushed over but she really had no idea what to say. When was the last time she had to comfort a friend? It was probably Mari or Kanan years ago. She had comforted her little sister before but she doubted the same tactics would work with this girl who wasn’t related to her and who was only one year her junior. “R-Riko-san… is something wrong?” No shit something’s wrong, Dia.

Riko quickly shook her head before fishing around for her notepad which was apparently forgotten in her bag. She dug through the bag and took it out, quickly and messily scribbling words onto it. ‘ **I’m sorry. This song always brings tears to my eyes.** ’

Dia had a brief moment of relief, but then she just had to push farther. “This song must be very powerful if it can even bring you to tears. Is there something special about it?” Riko shifted uncomfortably, glancing between the piano and her notepad and Dia realized that she must have hit on a sensitive subject. “A-Ah, you don’t have to tell me. I’m sorry if it’s something personal. I let my curiosity get the better of me.” Riko once again quickly shook her head and flipped the page on her notepad, slowly and hesitantly scribbling out words.

‘ **My best friend wrote this song for my birthday a few years ago.** ’ Dia blinked in surprise. A few years ago? So when they were in middle school? A middle schooler had written such an amazing, emotional piece? She had thought Riko a prodigy but this friend of hers must be something else. She said as much and Riko slowly nodded. ‘ **She was.** ’

“’Was?’” Dia wanted to strangle herself after letting out the words. It was so obvious what the redhead’s response would be if she even gave one. Dia wasn’t an idiot. She could put two and two together. Why Riko was crying, why this song meant so much to her.

Dia almost told the girl to forget she had even asked, but Riko held up her notepad. ‘ **She is no longer with us.** ’ Dia felt her throat dry up much too quickly and she wished nothing more than to leave for a glass of water. Riko seemed to notice how tense she became and quickly began scribbling on her notepad.

“I-I’m sorry… ah, um, for bringing it up.” Dia looked off to the side but Riko frantically waved her hands in front of her.

‘ **You did nothing wrong, Kurosawa-senpai. I don’t mind telling you, so please, don’t worry about it!** ’ Dia nodded slowly after reading the note and Riko flipped the page and scribbled. ‘ **In fact, if you do not mind, would you take a listen?** ’

“Eh? I-I couldn’t possibly… listen to something so personal.”

Riko giggled a bit and Dia felt her heart jump. ‘ **I’m sure Chika would be happy if you would hear her song. Though it was written for me, her music is able to touch the hearts of everybody.** ’

“Well… I suppose I can give it a listen then…” Riko nodded and scooted over, making room for Dia on the bench where she took her place. Riko stuffed the notepad away and took a deep breath, her fingers resting on the keys.

Dia had to admit, it was a beautiful song. It definitely reached her heart, tugging at it. She had only heard part of it before, but she could truly hear the girl’s feelings when writing it. This wasn’t a song of celebration, but a song of farewells, she figured. Maybe the Chika girl had known she wouldn’t be around, but this song spoke of bonds that could never be broken, of two ripped apart. Tears welled up in her own eyes and she was too captivated by the music to wipe them away. The last part of the song lifted her up a bit and she shook her head. The song wasn’t one of farewell, no song of farewell would have such a happy and intense ending. Dia felt like she could hear the Chika girl’s words through the last note. Not a farewell, but… ‘until we meet again.’ A warmth filled her chest as Riko slowly dragged out the last note before lifting her fingers. She turned to look at Dia and her eyes widened. Dia almost asked what was wrong before she felt another tear sliding down her own cheek.

“W-What? That’s strange…” She wiped away the tear, but it was quickly replaced by another which she also desperately wiped away. “S-Sorry, Riko-san, this is very unlike me.” When she finally rubbed the tears away, she saw Riko smiling gently, presenting her notepad.

‘ **I’m glad that you could feel Chika’s feelings. I believe that is what music is about.** ’

Dia started to nod but then something hit her. Chika? Chika… That name… and a piano prodigy. She finally remembered where she had heard that name before.

“I’m sorry, Riko-san, but, by chance, was your friend… Takami Chika?” Riko looked surprised but nodded.

Everything suddenly made sense. Dia remembered being forced to go to a piano recital when she was in middle school. There was a single elementary school student there that played. Even though the Dia of the time had no real interest in music, especially that of the classical genre, she had been moved by that girl’s playing. The piano prodigy, Takami Chika… she was all over the newspaper in Dia’s first year of high school… when she passed away from terminal cancer. It was a huge shock to the music world as the girl had kept it a secret for so long. So Riko was friends with that legendary piano prodigy… Dia smiled and felt her hand reaching out before she could stop it. It landed on Riko’s head and she gently rustled the girl’s hair, eliciting a squeak and a furious blush from the redhead.

Dia stood and grabbed her bag, walking toward the door. “Well, I believe it is time for us to get going.” Riko looked around the room and noticed how dark it had become. She quickly nodded and jumped up, swiping her bag and running over to her senpai.

They walked to the bus stop with no conversation, but it was a comfortable silence. When they reached it, Riko scribbled on her notepad. ‘ **I think I will walk home tonight.** ’ She gave a small bow and a gentle wave before turning away. Dia wasn’t exactly sure what spurred her on, maybe it was the worry from seeing the girl’s emotions earlier, but she knew she couldn’t let her walk home alone that night. Not tonight. Before she could stop herself, Dia grabbed Riko’s wrist, earning a surprised gasp from the redhead who turned as if expecting to see somebody else. When she saw it was just Dia, she tilted her head.

“Ah, um…” Dia let go and moved that hand to rub the back of her head. “I just thought… I mean, ahem. Would you… let me accompany you tonight?” She was grateful for the darkness and just hoped that the streetlight didn’t illuminate her enough to show how flushed her face was.

Riko seemed hesitant and quickly took out her notepad to scribble on. ‘ **Are you sure? It might be quite out of your way. I don’t want to inconvenience you.** ’ Dia waved off her concern. “It’s fine. If worst comes to worst, I’ll have one of my family’s drivers pick me up.” Still a bit hesitant, Riko finally nodded and scribbled down on her notepad. ‘ **Then, I would love to have you.** ’ A gentle smile graced her lips and Dia had to remember to breathe.

The two set off on their journey, Riko taking out her phone neat the start and messaging somebody, her parents, Dia figured, since she would be quite late. Dia took out her own phone and told Ruby that she would be late as well. The last thing she needed was the girl worrying about her. They walked in the same comfortable silence that had enveloped them as they headed for the bus stop. Dia found it nice, just walking next to this girl. A smile was plastered on her face the entire time and, no matter what, she just couldn’t seem to get rid of it. Riko would often glance up at the moon, her own gentle smile only serving to make Dia’s wider. It was the best night she had had in a long time. The thought briefly crossed her mind. If only we could do this every day. She waved the thought away. There was no way she could be that selfish. She would just enjoy this night with the girl.

There was nothing she wouldn’t give for this night to continue forever.

Dia was so fixated on her thoughts that she jumped a bit when Riko nudged her. “Y-Yes?” She turned to face the girl, only to see her presenting her notepad. It was hard to see in the darkness, but with some squinting Dia could make out the words. ‘ **My house is just up ahead.** ’ “Ah…” Well, of course. All good things had to come to an end. It was just the way of the world. Dia simply nodded and, sure enough, they arrived in no time. Dia wasn’t really sure where she should say goodbye, but she at least walked up to the door with her.

“Well… it was a nice walk. I’m glad I decided to walk with you.” Riko smiled and scribbled on her notepad. ‘ **I’m glad as well. It’s much more fun to walk together with you, Kurosawa-senpai.** ' Just as they were about to part ways, the front door opened and an older woman with the same red hair as Riko’s took a step out, a garbage bag in her hand.

“Oh, Riko! I was wondering when you would be home after that text.” Her eyes drifted to Dia and a devious smirk crossed her face. “Is this the ‘beautiful senpai’ that you’ve been telling us so much about lately?” Dia felt her face heat up and Riko shook her mother, her own face beet red.

Even through that embarrassment, Dia managed to collect herself enough to bow and at least offer her name. “Kurosawa Dia. I-It is a pleasure to meet you, Sakurauchi-san.”

Riko’s mother laughed. “What a polite girl. I like that. Thank you for walking our daughter home. Would you like to come inside for a bit for some tea?”

“Eh? Ah, n-no, I couldn’t possibly intrude at this hour…”

“Nonsense! Just for a bit! This is the first time Riko has brought a friend home in so long!” Sakurauchi-san just burst into laughter when Riko shook her again, her face lighting up, a silent berating clearly going on.

Dia still wasn’t sure. Had she even known Riko long enough to entre her house? Wasn’t there an order to these things? Meeting the parents was supposed to come after… Dia internally slapped herself and was very tempted to actually do it. You’re not dating her, you idiot! She eyed Riko who took her eyes away from her mother to look back at her senpai. Seeing the hesitation, she quickly scribbled on her notepad and held it up, covering most of her face, her eyes just shyly peeking over it. ‘ **I would like it if you would come in for a bit.** ’

 _Those puppy dog eyes just like Ruby’s… that’s not fair!_ Dia finally gave up with a sigh. “Then, if you’ll have me, I’ll be happy to stay for a bit.”

“That settles it then!”

Sakurauchi-san led the two inside. Dia slowly took her shoes off and made sure that they were lined up neatly before following the two further into the house. The house was nothing special, but it was cozy. They passed by a few pictures that showed the redhead in her youth and Dia caught more than one glimpse of her with a ginger. She couldn’t help but smile at that. The wide smile on Riko’s face… she hoped she could see that same smile someday. Though it wasn’t like she hated the gentle and smaller smile the girl wore around her.

“Please, have a seat.” Dia was sure Sakurauchi-san meant the table, but Riko pulled her arm and pointed at a set of stairs. She took out her notepad and scribbled before presenting it to her mother. So, she doesn’t even speak to her parents? Sakurauchi-san smiled and nodded. “Then I’ll bring some tea up in a bit.”

Riko nodded at that and moved towards the stairs, tugging the older girl along with her. Dia was barely able to excuse herself before she was tugged up the stairs, fully at the mercy of her kouhai. A room clearly marked with Riko’s name was their destination and Riko ushered her inside before closing the door. It was a relatively plain room, Dia thought. A bed, a couple shelves, a desk, and a piano. A piano?

“Oh, you have a piano in your room? That must be nice considering how much you seem to love it.” She looked at the redhead who hesitantly nodded. She quickly scribbled on her notepad. ‘ **It doesn’t get much use nowadays. I only play at school.** ’ “Hm? Why is that?” Riko looked away and Dia took that as her cue to change the subject. “Well, why did you want to bring me up here? I was barely able to greet your mother.”

‘ **If she gets started, she’ll never stop.** ’ The flat gaze Riko had as she read the words made Dia laugh softly. “That’s quite the way to speak about your own mother.” The redhead just shrugged. Instead she looked toward the piano and then back at Dia. ‘ **Do you mind?** ’ “Eh?” Riko pointed at the piano. “Oh! No, please, go ahead. It’s your house after all and I do enjoy your playing.” Dia wouldn’t say it out loud but she was excited at the prospect of getting to hear the girl’s music a second time that day.

Riko nodded and sat on the piano bench. Out of instinct, Dia sat next to her but this bench was a little smaller than the one in the school, so they ended up fairly squished together. Dia felt her cheeks heating up but if Riko noticed, she didn’t show it. After a short pause, sound filled the room, keys ringing out in a harmony that sent shivers down Dia’s spine, that filled her with excitement. It gave life to the room, the music dancing off the walls, making the air vibrate. It was a song that needed no words, a song truly of the heart.

But it was over just as quickly as it began, Riko’s hands moving to rest in her lap. Dia’s eyes fell from the girl to her hands and she unconsciously reached a hand over but pulled back before making contact.

_Come on, Dia! Be brave for once in your life!_

Before she could get a second chance though, there was a knock at the door and Riko jumped off the bench as if somebody was going to burst through with a weapon to kill them. But when it opened, it was just her mother. She looked from Riko to Dia to the piano and smiled, wordlessly setting down a tray with two glasses and cookies on her small table before exiting. Dia looked from the door to Riko who let out a long silent sigh.

“Is something the matter, Riko?”

Riko shuffled uncomfortably before reaching for her notepad. ‘ **Nothing. It’s like I said before, it doesn’t get much use. My mother was probably just surprised to hear it.** ’ “I see…” Dia had a feeling that it ran a little deeper than that, but she decided not to pry. “Well, that was a lovely song as always. I’m always glad to be able to hear your music.” Riko beamed at that and nodded, a content smile on her face.

They ‘talked’ for a bit longer over the tea and cookies before Dia decided it was probably time for her to head home. Even though she was having a lot of fun, she knew that Ruby would probably stay up waiting for her and she wanted her sister to at least get some sleep. They headed downstairs to see Riko’s mother sitting at the table with a small box in front of her.

“Ah, Riko, perfect timing. Can you run this over to the neighbors, please?”

Riko looked surprised and definitely wanted to say no, looking between Dia and her mother. “I’ll wait for you to be done with that before leaving.” Dia assured her. Riko sighed and took the box from her mother, nodding to the two before exiting the front door. Dia turned to look back at Sakurauchi-san who had a knowing smile on. “U-Um, is there something wrong, ma’am?”

Dia had a bad feeling about being alone with Riko’s mother for some reason but the woman just giggled and shook her head. “I just thought it might be nice for us to get to talk alone for a bit. Is that a bad thing?”  
“N-Not at all!” Dia sat down in the chair on the opposite side of the table, still feeling quite uncomfortable under the woman’s gaze. “Is there something you would like to talk about?”

“Hmm. Hmm.” Sakurauchi-san’s knowing smile made Dia want to ask just what she thought she knew but she decided to just wait it out. “So, you seem to be quite close to Riko, huh? How did you two meet?”

Though she was still nervous, Dia was grateful that the line of questioning seemed to be going down a normal route. She straightened herself in her seat and took a deep breath to compose herself. “I happened upon Riko-san playing the piano after I stayed late for some student council work. She offered to play for me, and I accepted. It’s generally how I’ve spent my time afterschool since meeting her.”

Sakurauchi-san’s eyes widened a bit. “She played the piano? And in front of you? Rather, for you?”

“Eh? Y-Yes, I suppose so. Is something the matter?”

That knowing smile quickly returned and she leaned forward a bit. “It’s really not my place to say this but… I’ll make an exception for you, Dia-chan.” Sakurauchi-san threw in a wink and Dia gulped. “Riko quit playing the piano quite some time ago.”

“Because of Takami-san, correct?”

“Ah, so she already told you about that. That’s good. Yes, Chika was the reason she stopped. After Chika’s death… Riko never played. Sometimes I thought I would hear a note or two from her piano, but nothing more. It makes me happy to know that she still plays at school. And I’m glad she found someone like you… someone she can play for.” The tone of her voice and the look in her eyes didn’t escape Dia. She went from a knowing smile to a sad, but almost hopeful smile. “Well, please continue to take care of my daughter.” Sakurauchi-san bowed her head which just made Dia flustered again.

“O-Of course!” Sakurauchi-san nodded happily at that but Dia still had something she wanted to inquire about before Riko came back. “Um… If I may…” She paused and Riko’s mother nodded. “Is the reason she does not speak also Takami-san?”

A long sigh escaped the woman’s mouth, but she nodded. “That’s right. She hasn’t spoken a single word since Chika’s funeral. I think she’s afraid. Chika was really her only friend. I think that… maybe she’s trying to avoid making friends again. She must be terrified of losing another friend. Ah, I probably said too much.” Just then they heard the front door open. “Let’s keep this conversation between us, Dia-chan.” Dia nodded quickly and Riko came back into the room.

Riko quickly took out her notepad and scribbled on it, showing it to Dia. ‘ **I’m very sorry about that. You ended up staying even later.** ’ Dia shook her head and smiled. “Do not worry about it. But it is late, so I really should get going.” Riko nodded and pulled her toward the front door, Dia giving a rushed goodbye to the redhead’s mother. Before she knows it, they’re standing outside the house. Riko holds up her notepad again. ‘ **Thank you for walking me home. It was really nice.** ’ “Mm. I quite enjoyed it as well.” Dia felt a bit awkward, not really knowing what to say. But she would see the girl again soon, so she just gave a gentle wave. “Then, I’ll see you at school, Riko-san.” And with that, she turned to leave.

But she only made it a few steps before something impacted her from behind. “E-Eh?” She felt the warmth of another body pressed against hers and she turned her head just slightly to see the red hair of her assailant. Riko didn’t hug her, but just pressed her forehead against Dia’s back. “R-Riko-san?” A few moments passed and Dia expected the notepad to be passed forward.

But never would she have expected to hear a small voice, a voice that made her heart leap into her throat, that made it impossible to breathe, that made every worry in the world seem small. A clear, beautiful voice that rang in her ears just as Riko’s music did.

“Dia…” Hearing her name from that voice sent a shock through her body. “I… wanted to tell you something.” Dia sucked in her breath. That was… Riko’s voice, right? Never in the time she had known her had she imagined that she would have such a heavenly voice. Dia wanted to hear it more, to hear it all the time, for it to be the thing she heard when she first woke up, when she went to sleep. She shook her head as she realized the girl was being serious and she was just daydreaming about her voice. She nodded, hoping the redhead would notice. Whether she did or not, Riko continued. “That night… when we met. It… wasn’t a coincidence. I… I knew about you, for a while. Everybody talked about you… the beautiful, scary president.” She heard a soft giggle from behind and felt her heart melt. “I wanted to talk to you for… a while now. But I, I have trouble… talking with people.” Dia thought back to her conversation with the girl’s mother and nodded. “So, I played. I knew you stayed late… So, I played and waited. And you came. I was really happy. Er, I-I am really happy!” She cleared her throat and Dia felt her the redhead’s hands slowly leave her back, the feeling of them still lingering, burning through her shirt.

“Riko-san…” Dia started but she had no idea what she was going to say so she was grateful when Riko interrupted her.

“W-Wait. I guess, what I’m trying to say is… I just, don’t want you to brush this under the rug. I don’t want you to wave me off as a coincidence… So, I guess, I mean…” Riko nervously stumbled over her words and Dia had to stop herself from squealing at how adorable that was. “I always use the piano, to express my feelings. But… I don’t want these feelings to disappear when I lift my fingers. So… just this once... I want to express them myself.”

There was a long pause. Dia could hear her heart beating rapidly in her chest and only hoped that Riko couldn’t hear it. Then she felt it, just briefly. A warm, wet sensation on her cheek, for just a second. But she knew what it was immediately, even without turning around. Riko just… did that, right? Dia’s face had never felt so hot before. So many embarrassing thoughts flooded the poor girl’s mind that she only managed to turn around when she heard the front door open again.

Riko was already inside, the crack of the door that was still open only revealing a bit of her flushed face and nervous eyes. But those eyes still met Dia’s and the girl spoke up. “I… um, I mean… You should… come over again, Dia.” With that, she closed the door, leaving a poor confused Dia to look up at the moon and try to straighten her mind out.

Riko had… kissed her cheek, right? That’s what happened, right? She was having a hard time making herself believe it. But the redhead said she had been watching Dia for a while, right? So did she actually… Dia swallowed. Did she… like her? More importantly, did Dia like Riko? Dia thought about it and she could find no reason to deny the fluttering in her chest, the suddenness lightness of her body, the rapid beating of her heart. A small smile snuck onto her face and she turned her gaze back to the street as she took her first step on the long walk home that she now felt like she needed.

“… What’s happening to me?”


End file.
